Producer: Joey Sommerville, Engineer: Dan Archer & Tom Walters, Tracks: Only If; K's Groove; B to da E; Any Other Day; Turn Around; Catch the Flow; Yes U Can; Kadi's Brother; Bow Diggy (Bow); Starving; Boofoobudoobie; Ploppy; Stronger Than I Am; Fattie
Funky, jazzy and soulful. This Burlington, Vermont collective has got
the groove thang down cold. It's nice to hear all the human qualities
a solid funk-based band can have. Too much of this genre has been dominated
by beat boxes and drum machines in recent years. The lack of samples
is also welcome. There are certainly points where influences peek out,
but Belizbeha have managed to capture their own spirit and inject it
into their music, not so much building on the past, but adapting it to
their own purpose. Definitely a band worth watching evolve. It'll
be interesting to see if they can keep such a large group (the bio
photo has 9 people in it) happy and together. The album is dedicated
to Charlie Willis, friend and bandmate, who was senselessly murdered
in Baltimore, Maryland in 1993. Sojo Music, 40 Saybrook Rd.,
Essex Jct., Vermont 05452-2624, e-mail: Belizbeha@together.net, WWW:
http://www.together.net/~belizbeh
Rating : ***-1/2